Operational assimilation of space-borne radar and lidar cloud profile observations for numerical weather prediction. Assimilation system development for cloud radar and lidar observations

Title
Operational assimilation of space-borne radar and lidar cloud profile observations for numerical weather prediction. Assimilation system development for cloud radar and lidar observations
Report
Date Published
2018
Series/Collection
ESA Contract Report
Document Number
WP-3000
Author
M. Janiskova
M. Fielding
M. Crepulja
D. Vasiljevic
T. Kral
P. Lean
Event Series/Collection
ESA Contract Report
Abstract

This report details the developments to the assimilation system at European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) in preparation for the inclusion of cloud radar and lidar data directly into the Four-Dimensional Variational (4D-Var) system. The work is divided into three sections. Firstly, the off-line observation handling of raw satellite data into Binary Universal Format (BUFR) is outlined. The new variable names required for the Observation Data Base (ODB) are also described. Secondly, the extensive developments to the assimilation system are reported. Finally, the system is tested using CloudSat and CALIPSO radar reflectivity and attenuated backscatter respectively.
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